Century #4: Dragon of Seas by Pierdomenico Baccalario Page A

“Quilleran, who could talk to the crows. Was he one of the Sages, too?”
    “No,” Mistral says, “he said that a friend taught him how to speak to the crows, and I think I know who it was.”
    “Who?”
    “Vladimir.”
    “The antiques dealer?” Ermete is astonished.
    “Yes, him. And do you know why? Because I’m convinced that the four masters who came before us had these powers, too. Take Professor Van Der Berger: he could talk to the Earth. And make plants grow, I think. Just like Harvey.”
    Ermete holds up both hands. “Hold on, hold on. I’m not following. Harvey has the power of Earth … like the professor, right?”
    “Exactly,” Elettra confirms.
    “And you’re saying Mistral has the power of Air, like Vladimir, the antiques dealer.”
    “What about you, then?” Sheng asks Elettra.
    “I have the same power Zoe had.”
    When he hears her name, the engineer thinks back to the day he spent with her in Paris. “Fifty-eight euros’ worth of flowers down the drain,” he grumbles. Then he turns to Sheng. “So that leaves you with the power of Water …”
    “Guys, I can’t even swim.”
    Everyone looks at Elettra.
    “Like your aunt Irene?”
    “Exactly,” the girl replies, raising her finger. “Maybe she could explain your recurring dream.”
    Sheng nods. “Yeah, maybe.”
    “Partly because I think your power is somehow connected to sleeping, Sheng. My aunt made me fall asleep with a wave of her hand.”
    “And don’t forget your yellow eyes,” Mistral breaks in, flipping through one of her notebooks.
    Sheng cringes, turning red. “You want me to strip so you can examine me better?”
    “We’re just trying to help you!”
    “In my dream there’s always a lot of water,” Sheng says, suddenly serious. “We swim over to this island. It’s just that … well, once we reach it, you guys get out, no problem, but I … I don’t. I can’t. I’m trapped.”
    “Now you see why it’s important for you to talk to my aunt? Even if she answers you with riddles, like all of them have done so far, they might be riddles that are easy to solve.”
    The four sit in silence, turning things over in their minds.
    After a while, Cecile walks over to the table, smiling. “Would you like me to take your suitcases up to the room for you?” she asks.
    Elettra stands up. “Please, don’t bother, ma’am. We’ll take care of it.” She winks at Mistral, inviting her to follow her. Then she turns to the other two and adds, “Will you wait for us down here a minute?”
    As soon as the elevator door closes, Elettra explains to her friend, “I didn’t want Sheng to hear me.”
    “What is it?”
    “In my aunt’s secret room, I found out that Sheng is a replacement for another boy, whose name is—or was—Hi-Nau.”
    “Sheng wasn’t supposed to be Sheng?”
    “Exactly. Before making me fall sleep, Aunt Irene told me that Hi-Nau’s powers were really strong, even stronger than all of ours.”
    “Then why isn’t he here?”
    “I don’t know.”
    “You could ask her.”
    “I’ll try, but the thing is … this might explain why Sheng is insecure.”
    “What, you think the rest of us aren’t? I haven’t used the language of animals for weeks. I get scared even thinking of doing it.”
    “But you
can
do it! I was scared by my energy, too, but I used it. The same thing goes for Harvey! But Sheng … what can he do?”
    The elevator door opens, leaving the two friends agape. The hallway looks onto the lobby fifty meters below. It’s like being in a theater with a breathtaking view: a spiral of carpeted terraces, gold lamps and sparkling windows. Outside, the sky is growing dark and the city is lighting up. Millions of multicolored neon signs are getting ready for another incredible night.
    Elettra and Mistral lean against the railing, captivated.
    The elevator Cecile took has yet to arrive.
    “So did you see that boy, Hi-Nau?” Mistral asks, staring down at two colorful specks,